The Eskimo with Z71 powerhead should have the same 7/8″ output shaft diameter as all other Eskimo models, which allows the K-Drill to slide right up on that shaft, after the removal of the K-Drill drill adapter. It would be advisable to drill a larger hole in the K-drill to allow for the 3/8″ connection bolt, but that is the only modification necessary to attach the K-drill to the Z71.

I’m considering between the 6″ and the 8” and using the Milwaukee fuel series cordless drill can you estimate the number of holes that can be cut through about 10″ of ice? Would an 8″ k-drill cut less holes with a fully charged battery than a 6″ shaft or about the same?

In tests we conducted a couple years ago when only using the 4 amp/hr lithium ion battery we drilled 400 inches of ice with the 6″ K-drill and 350 inches of ice using the 8″ k-drill. Most drills now are equipped with 5 amp/hr batteries, so an estimated 20% more battery would translate to an estimated 20% more holes.

No adapter necessary. The output shaft of the Eskimo should be 7/8″ diameter and after sliding the drive adapter out of the K-Drill, you should be able to slide the shaft right over the output shaft of the Eskimo. The bolt used on the Eskimo is 3/8″ so will need a new hole drilled through the K-Drill. Usually best to drill the new hole through at 90 degrees to the existing hole and then secure with a 3/8″ bolt with nyloc nut to prevent any drop off issues.

If you have the Clam Plate (approx $70) and the drill, you will still need the Clam Plate Adapter for K-Drill ($14.95) from either Clam or AWC in order to make the final connection between the Clam Plate and the K-Drill.

The K-Drill requires a lot of torque to cut ice, it is for that reason, we put flats on the top of the drive adapter. This is so it’s possible to secure the jaws of the drill chuck solidly on these flats and carry the load. We recommend aligning the jaws with the flats during installation and work the drill back and forth as you tighten the chuck. Tighten as tight as possible – drill 3-4 inches and tighten some more as the jaws will seat into the drive adapter. Drill 2-3 complete holes and tighten a 3rd time. Then you are assured it is tight in the chuck and won’t be spinning on you again.
We do offer replacement adapters if yours has gotten too rounded off. Please refer to our website.

I would expect that they would even though I personally have not fit one up to it. If the output shaft is the same 7/8″ diameter, then it will fit. However, the other electrics turn at a much slower speed and so it will require clearing the hole more often to avoid simply stirring the ice chips in the hole instead of quickly kicking them out to the surface. The slower RPM will still cut ice, but not as efficiently as the faster spinning hand drills.

Do you find there is a difference in product performance when drilling multiple holes through 24+ inches of ice if you use a clam adaptor plate? My setup is an 8 inch k drill and a Milwaukee fuel 2704 all new this year. Also using the new Milwaukee 9 Ah battery. This unit is amazing early season and in 8-15 inches of ice, but i have noticed when the ice got to 20 plus inches the unit didn’t perform the same. The drill would get warm after 5 or 6 holes and at times would even stop during the drilling, wait 10 seconds and would drill a bit again and stop? We get very thick ice as the season progresses in ND and want to take this unit to Lake Winnipeg, but concerned the performance will not be there for 20-40 holes per day in very thick ice. I also should mention the k drill extension is on this set up as well. I also have 2 extra 5 ah batteries, so that is not an issue. It is the drill becoming warm and stopping at times that concerns me. I also have 3 friends with this exact 2703/2704 fuel/k drill set up and report same issues? Thanks for response!

The greater the depth of ice the more important it becomes to frequently clear the hole of the ice chips. The more ice chips left in the hole, the more power is simply being used to stir the chips in the hole. When drilling at the rate of 1.5-2 inches per second, you will generate a lot of chips in 5 seconds. That’s why we recommend clearing the hole every 5 seconds when drilling deeper than 24 inches.

You can make the connection between the Clam Plate and K-Drill with an adapter from AWC or Clam. We both offer them for $14.95 and either one will work equally as well. Please view our website manual to fully understand how this connection is made.

During the design process of the K-Drill, this was one of the requirements. It does very well re-opening existing holes. It is important to know that the holes freeze from the outside in and that it will be necessary to “Hold Back” on the aggressiveness of the teeth of the K-Drill since they are cutting primarily on the outside edges of the blades.

I currently have a 6in kdrill. So far I am really liking it, but sometimes the tip freezes up. The tip will get compacted ice and snow in the shape of a cone on it and it will not continue to cut until I chip it away. Sometimes, even though I just chipped away the buildup, and there is no water on the tip, as soon as I go to finish cutting the hole it will freeze up right away with this buildup. One time I had to remove the ice buildup 5 times to get one hole drilled. I was wondering if you have a recommended solution to this problem I am experiencing.
Thanks!

That has been known to occur when we experience a lot of these exceptionally cold days. The Aluminum head is cold soaked and once it hits the water at the bottom – instant freeze. I will usually bring the auger up, out of the hole and ,while holding the shaft just below the float will spin off the excess water that’s hanging onto the head. This generally clears any excess water from the head before it has a chance to freeze. If there is some ice on the center tip not allowing me to start drilling my next hole I will generally just lightly tap the center tip down on the ice and the ice formed on the tip will snap off.

All drills have a small amount of backlash in the gears, this is normal. For this reason, we recommend setting the drill on the ice and starting in contact with the ice so the backlash in the gears is taken up by the load of this contact.

I am looking at the K-Drill and was wondering if my Milwaukee drill would work, The model is 2704-20 and appears to meet the torque and RPM requirements listed on your page however this specific drill model is not listed as one of the approved drills under the specs.

The Milwaukee 2703 and 2704 models are identical except that the 2703 is a drill/driver and the 2704 is the hammer/drill. Either one will work as long as you remember to put it into the drill mode before starting to operate the K-Drill.

The Strikemaster electric power head will connect to the K-Drill the same as any Strikemaster gas power head and will have enough power to turn the K-Drill. The issue you will experience is that the output RPM at 90 RPM is about 20% of what we expect for most efficient use of the K-Drill. When operating at 450 RPM the ice chips are in suspension and are quickly discharged out the top of the hole. When operating too slow the blades will still be cutting ice but the chips will be simply stirred in the hole until they can be forced out the top. This is not the most efficient means of drilling holes and will require the hole being cleared more often than when used with a high speed drill.

Hello I just got the 8″ with a Dewalt DCD 996 and drilled about 40 holes with with it when the drilled died completely on me . I have 5 batteries so it s not them. I had the drill on drilling mode and had it set to 2nd gear. 1st gear is 0-450rpm 2nd is 0-1300 3rd is 2000. Should i be in a different gear or was it just a defective drill ? Thank you

We recommend that any drill used on the K-Drill be set to the lowest speed setting. This setting provides the highest torque from the drill and produces the least load on the drill motor. Even at 450 RPM the K-drill is still cutting at the rate of better than an inch per second. More than fast enough for drilling ice.

I have the K drill auger and I use the Milwaukee M18 Fuel drill. I want to fish on a lake in Minnesota’s BWCA where power equipment (like drills) is not allowed and you can only use a hand auger. I love the ultra-light weight of the K drill auger but there appears to be no handle accessory for the K drill to enable it to be used without drill; however, I could manufacture one from a handle on a Mora (blue) hand auger by cutting the handle off that auger and fabricating a coupler so the handle would attach to the K drill auger. Any issues with doing this? … other than don’t apply downward pressure when hand-augering?

I wouldn’t advise doing it unless you have a long time to drill a hole. The K-Drill auger will take more torque to turn than a standard hand auger. An electric drill developes lots of torque and the higher RPM gets the job done in a short amount of time, but to replace the 450 RPM of a drill with a maximum of 50 RPM by hand would be extremely difficult to maintain.

Our price for the Clam Plate Adapter is $14.95 U.S. These should be available from any outlet that offers the K-Drill, (look under dealers on the K-Drill website). If they are out of stock, they can be ordered directly from us and shipped via US mail for around $20-$25 U.S.

I have seen your minimum drill requirements on your website. I don’t do a lot of ice fishing, but I do know that after using a K-Drill on my last outing I definitely want one. I might drill 8-10 holes on a fishing outing. I would like to know since I don’t fish a lot, will by DeWalt DCD950B work on an 8 inch K-Drill? Thanks much…Jaymie

Your drill selection has about 50% of required output to use with the K-Drill. It has 450 UWO (units of work output) vs the required 820 UWO. If you go with that drill you will be disappointed in both your drill and our auger.

Yes, the K-Drill can be used on a gas powerhead. I’m familiar with fitting them onto Strikemaster and Eskimo powerheads. As long as the output shaft is 7/8″ dia and rotates clockwise when viewed from the top, it will work. In some cases if the same bolt that was used to hold the steel auger onto the gas power head is not fitting through the hole of the K-Drill, it may be necessary to drill another hole through the collar of the K-Drill shaft and secure the K-Drill with a bolt and nut. This new hole is to be drilled at 90 degrees to the existing mounting hole.

IF it was broken in shipment from Thorne Bros., then it should be returned to them for replacement. If you don’t want to wait for the return and exchange, then get it sent in to us at the address below an we will repair.
Send to
AWC Distributing
6667 West Old Shakopee Rd
Suite 101
Minneapolis, MN 55438
Please include your name, address and phone number and the nature of the return and we’ll repair it and get it sent back to you.

It would be a little light on power output. It has 650 UWO and the DCD991, that we recommend has 820 UWO. I’d sooner er to the more powerful side than have you disappointed with the drill and the auger because it just won’t carry the load for the long run.

I just purchased an 8″ K Drill and looks like it will work great. My questions is regarding the size, 8″. The box read that it is an 8″ drill but seems a bit smaller than 8″. According to how I measured it is almost 7″. I have an 8″ gas auger and when I compare, the K Drill does seem smaller.

Is that right? Or did I get the 6″ auger by mistake? Just want to be sure and wondering if I need to exchange.

We put in drill requirements in our manual as well as on our website. Judging from looking up the model number of the Milwaukee drill, it falls short of the necessary drill requirements. We’re sorry, but we’d sooner lose the sale of a K-Drill than have a customer that’s disappointed in the performance of their drill and our auger.

Side Stabilizer Handle disconnecting-breaking the casting on the Milwaukee while drilling (second time this has happened), often happening when nearing the end of the hole. Very hard on the wrist. What setting and # should I have it on (lowest = 1?) and drill mode right?

The design of the side stabilizer arm mounting on the Milwaukee drill requires that it be kept very tight at all times. We’ve heard of persons actually adding an internal tooth lockwasher to this arm to help keep it tight during drilling. If you don’t like the idea of sending the drill back to Milwaukee for them to repair, the Clam Plate solves this issue because the ears are not used to hold it into position. The down side is adding an additional 5 lbs of material to the hole drilling experience.

I have Milwaukee 2703-20 and K drill 8 in with drill set on 1 and drill mode. The unit is only 1 year old with less than 100 holes drilled. The drill is slipping and ratcheting to the point of not getting through 18 inches of ice.

I have two sons 12 and 14 who are very responsible and love to ice fish. I want to purchase a k drill for them to use they fish tip ups and pan fish equally. Is the 6 inch easier to use ( less binding or grabbing at break through than the 8 inch) or is there no difference other than the amount of holes you can drill. I have a milwaukee fuel 2703 for them to use. Just looking for advice about which one they may experience the least amount of potential issues. Thanks

I think the 6″ k-drill would be a better choice for them because they will not be patient enough to stay in one spot all day long and will want to drill more holes than we as parents. The 6″ will provide them with adequate hole size for the fishing experiences and will allow them approx. 15% more holes per battery charge. The amount of torque difference between the 6″ and 8″ is very small.

A single large drop of silicone should hold the bubble level in position on the end of the drill. The silicone also has some resilience to handle any vibration you may experience as well. It’s also possible to use hot-melt glue but you will need to be quick to get it correctly located before hardening.

In looking at the specs, it should work, but what is not listed is whether it is brushless or not and though it has a 28 volt battery it does not indicate the amp hours of output. In many cases marginal drills will work if you only drill 2-4 holes and that’s it for an hour or so, but if you want to drill 10-20 holes then move and drill another 10-20 holes you’ll want to make certain you aren’t compromising on a cheap drill that will go up in smoke and you’ll be looking for a new drill before your next trip.

I have seen 3 different torque requirements for the K drill. Your owner’s manual says a minimum of 650in/lb, your product box says a minimum of 700in/lb, and your “drill minimum requirements” on your website says 725in/lb. What is it? I have a Ridgid Genx5 brush-less with a rating of 700in/lb. I would love to buy your product but I cannot afford to also invest in a larger drill. I know you receive endless questions about “will my drill work”, and I am sorry, but with different numbers coming from the manufacturer it is difficult to determine whether mine will work or not.

Our owners manual indicates a minimum of 725 in/lbs of torque and this is still the minimum drill requirement to operate either the 6″ or 8″ K-Drill. Further minimum requirements include Brushless, 4 amp/hour lithium Ion batteries, 500-750 RPM speed range setting, 1/2″ chuck with side stabilizer support arm.

If you are done drilling for a while I’d take off the battery and put it someplace to keep it warm until you’re ready to use again. Using common sense not to lay the drill in the water so it’s not getting the internal components wet is wise. I don’t think throwing it into a snowbank blocking all the drill body venting would be good, but simply laying it on top of the ice would be acceptable.

I have not personally mounted a K-Drill in these upright brackets. I know it would work to fit around the drive shaft on the top end of the drill, but due to the flighting it may only rest in the brackets on the bottom end, so an additional bungey cord may be necessary to hold the bottom of the K-Drill in position during transit.

Your list of drills does not include the newer Milwaukee drills, like the 2705-20 and 2706-20. Has either drill been tested with the Kdrill ? Does the One-Key app on these models help by setting the max RPM, torque, or other settings within the app ?

Do you have any info on how many holes can be drilled with the 6” vs the 8” on a charge taking into account the same depth of ice, same battery and drill?
(Milwaukee M18 model 2703-20 with 9 amp hr battery)

Our tests indicate with all factors being equal the 8″ K-drill completes 12-15% less holes than the 6″ K-drill on a fully charged battery. Of course the 8″ K-Drill is removing 36% more material than the 6″.

Major Things to remember
1) Be certain the drill settings are correct before connecting to the K-Drill – do not Dry-fire (running the auger without a load on the drill)
2) Keep blades covered until ready to drill ice – Blades are very sharp!!
3) Read the manual and watch the U-Tube videos before going out on the ice.

The Milwaukee drill has dynamic braking as a safety feature which stops the rotation of the drill immediately upon release of the trigger. When coupled with an auger of 6″ or 8″ in diameter this momentum to stop is very hard on the drill. It should only be run when there is a load on the drill. Sometimes you may want to support the drill with your gloved hand, in the smooth shaft area (below the float) just to spin off the water and ice. This load is enough to smooth out the stop of the drill.

I’ve been told by Dewalt that the 110 volt drill should adequately carry the load. They just have concerns of extension cords and water and issues of dealing with high voltage while possibly standing in water. Always better having a drill with a restricted/limited speed in order to maintain control while drilling.

Do you have a drive adapter that fits the Ion auger system? We were fishing a tournament and had to purchase a new auger bit so I bought the K-drill and was going to mount on my Ion auger so I did not have to purchase a drill too at this time but this did not work. The shaft on the Ion is smaller diameter than the drive adapter on the K-Drill and thus it is not stable.

Our adapter for the Clam Plate IDRLADPC also fits the Ion power head. This adapter retails for $14.95. You will notice that the K-Drill will cut with this power head, but because it is turning much slower than you would experience with a standard hand drill, it will not move the chips out of the hole as well so will not be as efficient.

I have the Dewalt drill #DCD996B I don’t see this one listed on the list of products that will work but it seems to meet all the requirements just wondering if this drill will work as well as the other ones?

The Dewalt DCD996 and DCD991 both have the same work output. The only difference is that the DCD991 is a Drill/Driver and the DCD996 is a hammerdrill. Both will work for the K-Drill application as long as the drive selection is in the ‘DRILL’ mode.

It is my understanding that you have increased the diameter of the float on the kdrill. If so, is there concern that the drill could come off and disappear down the hole? I brought this question up at the St Paul Ice Show and the guy there suggested I just contact you to see about get the larger size replacement. Would there be a charge? If so, how much.

The Milwaukee 2603-20 was the first of approved Milwaukee drills and has been replaced by Milwaukee with the 2703-20. The new Milwaukee delivers nearly double the torque of the old 2603-20 and doesn’t weigh any more.

The Milwaukee drills have a dynamic braking system that does stop the drill abruptly. Not noticeable on small diameter bits, but very evident with larger mass of the K-Drill. Strongly recommend not “Dry Firing” the drill with the K-Drill attached. It needs to have a load on the drill to cushion the stopping forces.

Couple things, since theres no registration are you going to stand behind your product when the receipt fades away in a year & did you change the flighting as this auger does not match the picture in the owners manual & if so why & what do the changes do to the performance? Is the new spacing not alowing all the shavings to come all the way up, hence the binding?

We only offer the complete drill kit with 2 batteries, charger, drill, side arm and carrying case. It is possible to purchase the drill 2703-20 and battery 48-11-1850 separately from online or contractor outlet stores.

I recently purchased the Milwaukee drill Model #2703-22. I’m clear that the drill needs to be set on the DRILL mode and on the Level 1 RPM setting, but what should the Clutch dial be set to? It has settings from 2-24. I noticed this question was asked earlier but your answer to did not address the clutch setting. Thanks.

Drill needs to be set on ‘1’ for the low speed-high torque setting. Collar to be set in ‘drill’ mode rather than ‘screw’ mode. When in the drill mode the collar setting for the torque does not come into play in the operation of the drill

By going online for your preferential drill manufacturer they will categorize their drills by their chuck size or power. 1/2″ drills are very common, just get one with the correct specs. See our requirements.

Just saw your video and at the end it said you could put the KDrill on a strikemaster powerhead. I have the 8 inch KDrill and love it. Will it fit the Honda lite powered head? I have a 10 inch bit and a lot falls though a 10 inch hole would love to put the KDrill 8 inch on. Thank you and have a great day.

Hello, just bought a 8″ k- drill. Love how it works on a milw. Fuel m18. Wondering if it’s been tested on any power heads? And witch one would you recommend? And what a guy needs to make it work. Please and thank you!

Via the engineering department: “The K-Drill is compatible with power heads having a 7/8” output shaft and that turn clockwise when viewing from the top. Strikemaster will use the same 5/16” bolt going through the shaft and Eskimo uses a 3/8” bolt, which means it may be necessary to either add a hole, at 90 degrees to existing hole in the K-Drill shaft, or drill out the existing hole in the K-Drill shaft and secure with a through bolt.”

I’m curious if something is maybe out of spec with my auger. I was under the understanding that the k drill would fit on strikemaster powerheads so I tried it on my strikemaster Honda lite this evening and was unable to get the holes to line up. It was close but not close enough to get threaded. Let me know if this should be able to work on my powerhead. I have a drill too but was hoping to use the powerhead late season.

Is there a safety option to keep the auger from going to the bottom of the lake, when as you already know ALL, I repeat ALL battery operated drills the chuck never stays tight and do come loose repeatedly, I own Dewalt 20V set, Craftsman 19.2V, and a Milwaukee 18V set as I work on houses for a living All were bought in hopes the chuck coming loose would stop, Never has, so your answer to the bottom of the lake??????????????

I bought my Kdrill four or five years ago and love it. I have scene moves to Idaho and am now dealing with more slush pockets and now the head keeps freezing up on me. Have you addressed this issue and if so how can I get the head replaced. Thank you!

Yes, we have fixed that problem. The original design of the cutting head from the first K-Drills had a step below the center tip that prevented a smooth flow of chips off the center tip. Once the center tip and surrounding surface packed with ice shavings it stopped the entire drill from moving through the ice. The latest design has a smoother transition that allows the chips and shavings from the center tip to slide onto the area of the cutting blades and be carried out with the chips from the main chipper blades, hence making the K-Drill work through a wider range of drilling conditions. We can upgrade older K-Drills to the new design if you send it in. There is no cost beyond the in-bound shipping.

Dewalt no longer uses max torque in the specs for their drills. They now uses AWO and MWO to determine the “power” of the drill. Since your website says the minimum requirement to use the K Drill is 750in/lbs, how can I tell if a certain Dewalt drill has enough torque?

The cordless drill augers have changed the game of ice fishing—absolutely no doubt about it! The Clam Outdoors Drill Plate teamed with the K-Drill Systems Auger takes efficient ice fishing to a whole new level!
Photo credit: Joshua Schave Photography